Pearl of the Stars
by The Seldom Seen Kid
Summary: Is it too much to hope for her to heal him? Maybe even love him? Who was he kidding, he's a monster and she's a delicate beauty, he'd ruin her.
1. Chapter 1

A/N Well, I know I should be working on _Unfinished Business_ but I was hit with inspiration for this. Ever heard of a band called Coheed and Cambria? If not I suggest you listen to "Pearl of the Stars" that is what influenced this story, if you have then...well...I don't know...listen to the song anyway...

The art I'm using for the cover is not mine, I have no idea how to contact _somethingatomic_, (I think it's a deviantart picture, I found it searching on Bing) but if any of you know please let me know so I can ask, and if the artist is reading this and would prefer me not to use it just PM me and let me know and it will be removed.

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, nor any characters affiliated with it, nor do I own any part of the band Coheed and Cambria...although I'd love to meet Claudio Sanchez...he seems super nice...

_Each night I'd wish to god he'd let her rest  
This hurts me more than any man can bear  
She's my angel from the west  
There'll never be one to take her place_

When you go I will know  
Follow you to the stars  
And when the world burns apart  
There'll be a place for your card

I'd give you everything, if only I'd know you'd take it  
But you don't, cause you're you, that's why I'll always love you  
My pearl of the stars

She saw him while searching for medicinal herbs, he was unconscious, leaning against a tree. She tensed and headed towards him, the small hairs on the back her neck standing at attention. She didn't understand why he was here, Sasuke had been executed, Suigetsu was still a missing nin. Maybe he was here for Karin, she thought to herself. The red-head was rotting away in a cell deep beneath Konoha. She noticed the largest member of the former team Taka was breathing heavily, as if there was a great weight on his chest. The medic in her tried to claw it's way out, but her rational side argued, _he was and still is a dangerous criminal._ But Haru No Sakura was a bleeding heart and eventually she succumbed to her feelings and knelt down to heal him.

He woke to a foreign chakra probing his body, instantly he felt his rage building he opened his eyes, sclerae black, his body hardening, pulling in energy from the earth around him. He felt the hands hold him down, the hands were small, seemingly fragile, but the strength holding him down was unreal. He opened his eyes and mouth ready to start laughing maniacally, but was stunned into silence when his eyes were greeted with a soft silvery curtain of pink. Big green eyes peered from between strands of pink hair, "Easy big guy, I'm only healing you." Her voice wasn't as light as he thought it would be, with big doe eyes and pink hair he expected her to have a high pitched voice. He watched her silently, his rage receding, he hadn't been able to accomplish that since feeling Sasuke's killer intent.

"Who are you?" He asked softly, his eyes returning to their normal reddish brown. "Sakura." She muttered, "Why are you so busted up?" She asked her teeth gritting from the effort of stitching his unbelievably thick bones back together. "I don't know." He answered, she looked at him incredulously. She sent chakra to his brain to check for a concussion and was shocked to find a strange growth. It was organic, connecting his amygdala to his hindbrain, but it had a chakra pathway, like a kekkai genkai.

He watched as she pulled away, his eyes were nervous she noted, but they had a glimmer of curiosity. "I know I'm not strong enough to subdue you, and I was willing to just heal you and pretend we had never crossed paths." He remained silent, "But I have found something interesting on your brain, please, come back with me to Konoha, my shi-" he cut her off, "Why? So you can execute me like you did Sasuke-sama?!" He roared, his arm suddenly transformed he took a swipe at Sakura, she dodged easily, she was a field medic, dodging was drilled into her to the point that it came as naturally as breathing. "I believe my shishou and I could fix you, you seem prone to fits of rage." She stated calmly, he froze, a look of disbelief fleetingly crossed his face. "You're lying!" He screamed, extending his arm, trying to catch her. "I am not, there's a growth on your brain, connecting two different parts of it that shouldn't be there, it has its own chakra path, it's similar to a kekkai genkai." Instantly he was back to normal, he fell to his knees.

"Now, I'm not one hundred percent sure, which is why I would like to take you to Konoha, my shishou is Tsunade Senju, I believe with her help we could help you and possibly get a pardon for you if we can prove the growth influences your behavior." She took a deep breath to steady herself, he looked up at her, his eyes full of innocence and hope. "Would you protect me?" He whispered, something about this woman drew him in, it didn't completely soothe his rage, but just a few words from her mouth had silenced it for a moment, before his mind had even registered what her words had meant. She watched him, confused, "As best as I can, yes." She answered, something about him screamed innocence, the phrase _Don't judge a book by its cover_ ran through her mind. Although, he did work for Sasuke and Orochimaru at one point. She hoped all of that could be explained by the growth, there was something in his eyes and face that made her want to help him. "What's your name?" she asked, her hand tentatively reaching out to cup his cheek. He looked up at her, stunned by the sweet gesture, "Jūgo." He mumbled, the bridge of his nose turning a light shade of pink.

A/N

Well, originally this was gonna be a one-shot with Itachi but for some reason I was like, this makes more sense with Jūgo. He has so few precious things in his life, I feel he needs more...please review or PM me with your thoughts/criticism on the story.

Also I know this isn't as long as most of my other story's chapters but I'd rather see how this one is received first before I fully invest myself into this.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N I'm happy! I've got followers!this chapter is dedicated to ya'll: **Slit-Wrists-Of-Insanity**, **Jeanne936**, and **jaye baby**! Now, as I reread the last chapter I realized I didn't explain much in my author's notes (face palm). So, for those of you that haven't picked this up, Jūgo's growth/possible kekkai genkai is obviously my own creation. Sorry if they seem a little OOC, well...not really, it's my story I can do what I want...anyway, I think I'm gonna let _Unfinished Business _stew for a while, I have a feeling once I move I'll have more time to think about it, where with this I have most of it planned out. Thanks for reading! (Anyone else re-watching the Naruto series on Adultswim? Please tell me I'm not the only one annoyed by how slow it seems to be moving...I miss the old days when they'd play anime every night...)

Disclaimer: If I owned Naruto it probably wouldn't be as long as it is...and there wouldn't be as many filler episodes...oh well.

She temporarily disabled his hearing and sight to keep him from going into a rage due to external stimuli. As she led him to the town he could feel the chakra signatures of jounin and ANBU surround them. His rage started to build, then he felt Sakura begin to rub circles with her thumb on the arm she was holding, he felt the ground start to tremble as he assumed she threatened them. One of the ANBU knocked him out.

He woke in a cell, his sight and hearing back, he felt a flare of chakra from across the stone room and caught a flash of pink, she was arguing with someone behind a two way mirror. He couldn't make out the words but the fact that she was angry, the one who had promised to help and protect him, made him furious; he felt his mind snap and blacked out.

Sakura felt the surge of energy, she had been arguing with the elders on his treatment, she didn't believe her patient should be locked away from people, maybe tranquilized and allowed a small amount of freedom in the psych ward. They didn't want him anywhere near the townsfolk, which she understood, but she felt he wasn't as evil as everyone pegged him to be. "Jūgo-kun, please, you must calm down," she spoke calmly, trying to calm him down, his eyes were black, his skin grayish brown, he laughed menacingly.

She could imagine the smug looks the elders had on their wrinkly old faces at the moment and were probably holding ANBU back to teach her a lesson. She smirked into the camera in one of the corners as she dodged his fist, landing on his back. She clung to him and dodged the extra growths he sprouted from his back. She placed her hand in his fiery orange hair and poured her medical chakra into his brain, finding the strange bridge of flesh, binding the two small pieces of his brain together. She whispered sweet, calming things into his ear as she soothed the pathways in the organ. She gave a sigh of relief when his body returned to normal and collapsed, she landed on her knees painfully, his heavy skull adding weight to the quickly bruising flesh. She only grimaced, never once stopping her whispered lullaby or massaging hand in his hair.

He opened his eyes slowly, once again seeing the pink-haired female, her emerald eyes closed. He could hear a tune coming from her chest, it rose and fell with each and every breath she took. He felt her hand gently pull his hair and scratch his scalp, he leaned into her touch and sighed finally content with his lot in life. She opened her eyes, a soft smile graced her face, "Feeling better Jūgo-kun?" She asked, her voice as soft as the curves of her face. _She must not train very much_ he noted, also feeling the plumpness of her thighs underneath his skull. He nodded, "What happened?" He asked, his voice quiet and deep. "You lost control, I used my chakra to influence the flow of the pathways in the growth in your brain." She smiled, he could tell she was pleased with herself, part of him was elated, she had found a way to incapacitate the beast, but his heart sank at her next words, "It's not permanent I'm afraid. I need to study it more." She bit her lip, her eyes asking him if he was willing to be a lab rat and prisoner at the same time. He nodded his consent, feeling his heart flutter uncomfortably when her eyes lit up with happiness. "Thank you Jūgo-kun!" She exclaimed in an excited whisper.

She wrapped her arms around his shoulders and pulled him to her torso, hugging him. He tensed momentarily, the only other person to be comfortable enough to hug him had been Kimimaro. Absentmindedly he noticed she smelled of rain and soil, like the forest after a drought. Maybe, just maybe, she could be the rain to his drought; he felt a seed of hope and another foreign feeling, only something he had felt for the wild animals he had come across, sprout in his chest.

The elders behind the two way mirror sneered with disgust, "How dare she hug a wanted criminal!" The male grumbled to his partner, "Yes, but remember how she treated the Uchiha? She sympathized with him as well." The woman muttered, just as disgusted by the display of affection, "Ah, yes. Didn't she heal his eyes as well, saying he should be allowed to die a proud member of his clan?" He asked, stroking his chin thoughtfully. His female partner nodded, "We didn't allow it, but that Uzumaki brat granted her permission...what Tsunade saw in him I'll never know, but she was just as sentimental as well." She scoffed.

Sakura continued to play with Jūgo's hair, something about him reminded her of a wild animal. They both jumped when her pager went off, she read the message quickly, "I'm needed at the hospital." She told him, noting the fleeting look of disappointment in his eyes. "Will you be back?" He asked quietly, almost shyly. She smiled brightly at him as she stood, "Of course, hopefully next time you'll be able to come with me." He felt as if his heart was constricted, "I'll be back as soon as I can Jūgo-kun!" He smiled faintly, "Okay Sakura-sama."

A/N

So far the only thing I'm disappointed with is the length of my chapters, but I seem to burn out quickly...I don't want things to rush, but I don't think I could handle writing a story over 10 chapters but I guess we'll see. Reviews pleasepleaseplease!


	3. Chapter 3

A/N I GOT REVIEWS! Although I was referred to as "Honey BooBoo" in one...don't know whether to laugh or be insulted...it didn't seem like an insult so I'll laugh, HAHAHAHA! This chapter is dedicated to **squalo king **and **merr**. They have inspired me to start this chapter ASAP and dedicate it them as well, THANK YOU! On a side note, Sakura is 25, Jūgo is 27, the other characters are around that age...roughly...

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To say she was exhausted when she left the operating room would have been an understatement. She had hoped to spend the day picking herbs, then going home for a relaxing bath and maybe a book before bed. Instead she healed a criminal and seems to be his friend as well, and now, she has to report to Naruto and try to find her mentor Tsunade.

She sighed heavily, running a hand through her pink mane, her fingers brushed her headband out and she tucked it into her medic pack, it was a hot night. Allowing her short hair to fall free and tangle itself in the wind. She looked to her left when another set of footsteps joined hers, "Hello Kakashi-sensei." She smiled, but it didn't reach her eyes, she was too tired. "Yo Sakura-chan! Word on the grapevine is you brought in a wanted criminal by the name of 'Jūgo' all by your lonesome." His eye crinkled with amusement as he mussed her hair, pulling his hand back when she shot him a death glare.

"As a matter of fact, yes I did, I believe I can heal him." She hissed, Kakashi's gaze hardened, "Sakura, he's a killer." His voice was cold, she felt tears of anger burn her eyes, "You're a killer too! The only difference is who told you to kill."

He sighed, "Don't let your heart cloud your judgment Sakura.", he turned to leave, "He needs me Kakashi-sensei..." she whispered, "Then how did he survive this long enough without you." He responded without turning around, he walked off.

She clenched her fists angrily, her jaw set as hot tears of rage fell down her cheeks. She took a deep breath, determined not to let Kakashi get to her, he was just looking out for her, not trying to hurt her feelings. Feeling a little better she finished making her way to the Hokage's tower.

"Hokage-sama." Greeted Sakura, "Eeehh Sakura-chan! How many times do I have to tell you not to call me that!" He screeched, jumping up from his paperwork. Sakura chuckled, "You fought tooth and nail to become Hokage and you don't want people to address you by the title?" she teased. He huffed, "I do...but you're Sakura-chan! You've known me back before we even graduated from the academy." He plopped down into his chair and placed his head on the papers. "Do you realize the shit storm you've created by bringing Jūgo here?" He asked, his voice drained and tired. She frowned softly, "I'm sorry Naruto-kun, but there was something in his eyes...I have to help him, I think he's innocent." Naruto looked up, his face scrunched up in something akin to anger and surprise, "Sakura, he tried to kill B!" She flinched from the tone of his voice, "But what if I can prove he's innocent? That his actions aren't his own." She whispered. Naruto sighed heavily, "You have one month Sakura, I'll make it an official mission." He fished an empty scroll out of his desk, "You are to report to me on your progress once a week, if I feel you aren't progressing fast enough I'll terminate the mission and he will be executed."

Sakura nodded, she wanted to argue but knew Naruto was pushing his luck by even granting her that. "One more request Naruto-kun?" She asked, her voice small. He nodded and continued writing, "May I treat Jūgo in the psych ward?" He looked up, his eyes wide, "Are you serious?" He asked, she flinched from his gaze, "You expect me, to let this man who can turn into a monster at the slightest provocation, be placed with injured, defenseless people, children?!" She bowed her head, "I can control him to a degree and ANBU can help take him down." She mumbled, Naruto heard her though, he sighed, running his fingers through his blonde hair, "I think it will help with his rehabilitation..." Her eyes were big, unshed tears threatening to fall. He had always been a sucker for Sakura, reluctantly he nodded, "He gets ten minutes a day to leave his prison cell. He has to stay in the courtyard, one, and I mean _one_" He held up a finger, "Toe out of line, and he will be executed." His voice and eyes stern.

Sakura's eyes lit up, "Yes Hokage-sama!" She saluted, Naruto shook his head, "You're dismissed." He waved his hand and resumed writing out her mission scroll. She took off like a rocket, headed straight for the Interrogation building, then she noticed the sun had set and there was hardly anyone outside. She looked at her watch, it was already eleven at night. She ran a frustrated hand through her pink locks, encountering quite a few tangles, Tsunade would be useless until tomorrow afternoon. She turned on her heel and headed for her apartment. Maybe now she could that hot bath she had pictured earlier that day, or maybe her ward would like to visit the onsen, she clapped her hands happily and raced home to ask him.

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Jūgo felt he had been relatively behaved that day, especially when a man with a dusty blonde mullet came in. He had strong features and his face was weathered and wrinked despite his silly hair cut, clearly a man used to being in charge. "I'm Inoichi Yamanaka. I am here to interrogate you." He introduced himself, Jūgo nodded, "I will not put up a fight if I can help it." His red eyes bore into Inoichi's pale green ones. He watched as the older man's brow furrowed, "I will use my clan's technique to go through your memories, if you put up no resistance, this will be painless." He sat down on the stone floor locked his fingers together in a circle, "Be careful." Mumbled Jūgo, a small smile on his face. Inoichi frowned for a moment before pushing himself into the troubled man's mind.

A/N

Alright! Next chapter will look into Jūgo's mysterious past! Will Inoichi survive the madness that resides there? Will Jūgo lose what little control he has and be executed? Who knows...well...I knows but that'll have to wait. Also, I've been playing around with an idea to revive Kimimaro, he's one of my favorite characters and since this is AU I could do it...what do ya'll think? Would my story still be readable if I took that kind of creative liberty? Anyways...thanks for reading peeps!


	4. Chapter 4

A/N Alright, so, I'm moving to Germany this week, I got a tattoo and my arm is sore, it's a tribal stag, the entire length of my forearm (squeal), it looks awesome, although I'd rather have it facing my hand instead of my elbow, but whatever, I love it anyway. I got some of Jūgo's past from Narutopedia, not much is really known about him, so I was able to do what I wanted...to an extent...hope you enjoy it!

All mistakes are my own, I have no beta.

_Past Speech_

**Jūgo and Inoichi speaking in Jūgo's mind**

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Inoichi looked around, he was in a bustling village, similar to Konoha but much smaller. He zoomed in on a small child, he had wild, flaming red hair, red eyes and wore very weathered, over-sized clothes. The boy's face was dirty and morose as he hid behind a small bush, watching the other kids play. He moved closer when he noticed the kids had begun taunting the small kid, _"Hey freak! Why're you hiding?"_ A boy with purple hair sneered, Jūgo's small form shivered. The bully moved closer to him and pushed him, _"I'm talking to you! Are you dumb or somethin'?"_ Inoichi could see Jūgo's former self shake, whether from tears or anger he couldn't tell. _"You should get away." _He whispered to the group that had begun forming around him. Inoichi watched in horror as the children laughed and leapt at him, they beat him with their small fists, drawing blood.

Without warning Jūgo's small body transformed into a monstrous beast. His claw like hand jerked out and gripped the purple haired boy's neck, with his other hand he reached into the boy's gasping mouth and tore his tongue out, laughing hysterically. The children screamed and scattered, leaving the bully alone with him, _"What's wrong? Have nothing to say now?"_ Jūgo growled, wagging the bloody muscle in front of the terrified child's face, the boy whimpered, he had wet himself. Jūgo clicked his tongue and snapped his wrist, effectively breaking the small boy's neck.

~.~

Sakura sunk deep into the hot pool, relaxing, next to her the small boy remained rigid. "Aw come on Yasuo-kun, relax! This cost me a good portion of my paycheck..." She complained, the pale boy turned his emotionless face towards her, the only hint at his irritation was the slight twitch of the red dots above his eyebrows. "Please tell me you are not serious, we need groceries Okaa-san." His monotone voice echoed throughout the room. Sakura remained silent, "We have bills, how are we going to survive if you spend all your money?" His vivid green eyes so much like hers watched her carefully, even though they shared no blood people believed him to be her son, unless they were from Konoha, no one knew where she had gotten the baby, and no one questioned her; she was a medic through and through and many assumed she had taken the infant in when the mother couldn't be saved. They couldn't be further from the truth.

She cracked a smile, "We'll sleep outside in the woods! I'm a ninja, I can handle it." Her emerald eye popped open when he splashed her, she sputtered as some of the water made its way into her nose. "You brat! You've just declared war!" She roared, using her outrageous strength she slapped a wave at Yasuo. He was unable to dodge, he hadn't practiced dodging yet in the academy, he had just started a few weeks before. Their screams of laughter could be heard from the front desk, soon a maid knocked on the door and politely asked them to either tone it down or leave. "I'm starting to get prune-y anyway." Sakura huffed angrily, she got out of the pool and went to the door, only to be stopped, Yasuo had caught her around her middle, his small thin arms wrapped around her waist, he pressed his face into her hips, he nuzzled his nose into the towel conserving her modesty. "I love you Okaa-san." He whispered.

She smiled softly and rubbed his scalp soothing, "I love you too." She could tell he was tired, he had just started the ninja academy and he worried about her all the time, his little mind and body could only handle so much. He had never asked where he came from, she had offered to tell him after she found out he had been teased. He merely shook his head and told her "You are my Okaa-san no matter what anyone says." She had cried after that. When she was his age all she was worried about was fitting in and avoiding chores, and here he was, her baby, the exact opposite of other kids. Always asking if she needed help with bills, if she wanted him to do more chores. Guilt wracked her conscious almost daily, the only thing to alleviate it was his small smile at the end of the day when he greeted her.

Rock Lee, hoping that the bone manipulator they had fought could help heal people with bone problems, had given Tsunade a bone fragment when they came back from trying to get Sasuke back, she had studied it and had given it to Sakura as a project, to see if she could pull information from it. Much to Tsunade's surprise, she had found DNA and was able to create a clone, after many failed attempts, she had a successful embryo make it to full term in a special bubble Sakura had made solely for the purpose of cloning without the need for a womb. This child, was the clone of Kimimaro of the Kaguya clan, she had studied up on them, making sure she knew what she was bringing into this world. She had changed her mind and was going to end the embryo's life when she found out they were bloodthirsty and loved war, the clan's history was written in blood on the flesh of those they had killed, but the elders had caught wind of what she was doing and forbade her from destroying it, they wanted another bloodline to add to their crown. They may have lost the Sharingan but they were able to replace it with Shikotsumyaku, the ability to transform one's bones into weapons.

Sakura hated herself with every fiber of her being, until the baby had looked at her, he had just been 'born', his blue-gray eyes focused on her face before closing and falling asleep, she promised herself she would never let him experience the pains he had in his former life. She named him Yasuo, it meant 'peaceful one', she had wished him nothing but peace from the moment he was born. She had refused to allow the elders to place him with a foster family, she had argued that she had created him, she had a right to raise him and with Tsunade and Naruto on her side she won. After that, she had destroyed the machine and all of her notes on subject. She wouldn't even use this information to help couples who couldn't conceive, her fear of the elders using it was too great.

She lifted him up and carried him into the changing room so that they could leave. She would make him a bento before she went to bed, maybe with one of his favorite manga characters, she shook her head, as she pulled his robe onto his dozing form, she didn't want to embarrass him. As she pulled her own yukata on she decided she'd try to do Kirby, he liked boiled ham and olives, should be easy enough. She shook her hair free of any remaining droplets of water and picked him up, laying his head on her shoulder she made her way out of the onsen and to their apartment.

~.~

Inoichi watched in horror as the town burned, countless bodies littered the ground, some groaning in pain, others twitching as the life left them. Out of the blaze Jūgo's silhouette appeared, he had returned to normal, his large eyes filled with tears as he stumbled out of the bloody village. He wandered for years, hiding in caves, sometimes accidentally unleashing the monster within him, tormented by the guilt of murder when it happened. The shinobi watched him, disbelieving, he had thought this man relished killing, but this boy was driven mad with guilt.

He watched as the red-head was approached by a white-haired youth, possibly the same age. He looked eerily similar to Sakura's child, just an older version. He had been shocked when she brought the baby by to show his daughter, Ino. She had accepted it without question, which was weird for her, but he couldn't be as accepting as she was he, he had tried to dig into it, but was told to butt out by Tsunade herself.

He watched the two boys interact, not really taking in the words so much as the actions, the white-haired one was somehow able to interact with Jūgo without setting him off, he heard the name Orochimaru and tensed. They were talking about Orochimaru. _"Come with me, I'm sure Orochimaru-sama can fix you, he's one of the best medics of his age."_ The white-haired teenager smiled softly at Jūgo, _"Are you sure? He can really fix me?"_ He begged, hope shining in his eyes, _"Yes, he can."_ The pale teen's features were disarming and gentle, he tugged Jūgo's hand and led him to Orochimaru.

Inoichi grimaced, having to see all the tests and torture the poor teen had to go through. He watched silently as Orochimaru told Jūgo he'd need to perform more tests, then locked him in a godforsaken prison. The only thing that kept the red head from losing his mind was the thought of Kimimaro and he being able to live in peace.

The Yamanka skipped ahead a few years to where Jūgo met Sasuke. The reasons he went ahead with him was because Sasuke could control the rage with his killer intent and he felt that Kimimaro lived on in Sasuke. **"Are you done yet?"** A baritone voice startled him out of his reverie, **"Yes, I am finished."** Yamanaka answered, canceling the jutsu, when he returned to his body he watched Jūgo, sizing him up. He felt sorry for the man in front of him, he had been misunderstood and used his entire life when all he wanted was to be normal, he had to report this to the Hokage.

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A/N

WOOH! Well, I hope this pleased my readers, it'll be a few days before I update, I'm moving to Germany on the 26th and getting my internet turned off here on the 24th. I'll **_try_** to get the next chapter out before next friday though, until then R&R please! Btw if anyone is confused about Yasuo let me know and I'll try to better explain myself in the next chapter, if not I'll just move on. Thanks for reading! (I also don't own Kirby in any way shape or form, but I do love him...he's so cute and squishy!)


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